Old Joliet Prison: City Gets Grant For Rehab Study

(The following press release was issued by Katie Smith on behalf of the city of Joliet.)

JOLIET, IL - The Illinois State Historic Preservation Office has announced the City of Joliet will receive

approximately $40,000 in grant funding to complete a Conditions Analysis and Structural Assessment on
all structures within the 16-acre western compound of the former Joliet Correctional Center. Grant
funding is being awarded through the State of Illinois Certified Local Government Matching Grant
program. The grant award amount will cover 80 percent of the total project costs with the City funding the
remaining 20 percent as its local match.

The City plans to issue a request for proposals to obtain a consultant to conduct this assessment in the late spring. The former Joliet Correctional Center, also known as the Joliet Prison, operated for 144 years until the
state closed its doors in 2002. The buildings within the prison walls have quickly deteriorated since the
facility’s closure in 2002; however, many of the buildings retain a high level of architectural integrity.

In December of 2017 the City of Joliet secured a five-year lease agreement with the Illinois Department of
Corrections and Illinois Department of Central Management Services that provides the City with control,
oversight and temporary usage of the prison. Now having full access to the site, the city intends to
complete a full conditions and structural assessment of its structures, exteriors, interiors, mechanical
systems and electrical systems.

“This assessment will help the city and interested parties to determine the condition of each building as
well as the cost to stabilize, repair, rehab, and/or demolish buildings,” commented Jayne Bernhard, city
planner and staff liaison to the Joliet Historic Preservation Commission. “The assessment will contribute
to the identification of potential sustainable and appropriate reuses for the various structures at this
site.”

Through partnering with the Collins Street Task Force and Joliet Area Historical Museum, the city has
made significant progress in its efforts to stabilize, preserve and promote this significant historic
resource. Recent activities included efforts to cleanup up brush and debris as well as catalog
artifacts through in-kind donations from local trade unions, businesses and community volunteers.

The city is also partnering with the museum and the Joliet Region Chamber of Commerce & Industry on a
grand opening event at the prison in late August.

File image Joliet Patch